02 14 14 JTF1
The latest from the Mendota Heights Police Department
SUPPORT STAFF
Kim Henning
Trista Miller
Becky Pentel
POLICE OFFICERS
Jerry Murphy
Scott Patrick
John Larrive
Bobby Lambert
Tanner Spicer
Todd Rosse
Jeff Vonfeldt
Steven Meyer
Denise Urmann
Michael Shepard
Peyton Fleming
SCHOOL RESOURCE
OFFICER
Jennifer Fordham
INVESTIGATIONS
Mario Reyes
Chad Willson
SERGEANTS
Neil Garlock
Brian Convery
Eric Petersen
RESERVES
Randy Pentel
Jim Knox
Jeff Parker
George Castillo
CHAPLAINS
Frances Cuenca
Joel Detlefsen
Lynn Liberman
Butch Millett
Sue Plucker
John Snider
David Wick
Lenny Andrie
CHIEF
Mike Aschenbrener
FEBRUARY 14, 2014
Calls from “Police” asking for a donation:
This is not a legitimate fundraising method for police departments. Donations are best made either
directly with the department or with documentation in hand of the actual fundraiser in progress.
“Jail,” “Police,” or “Sheriff” calls demanding warrant fees:
This is not how the process works—don’t fall for it. If you truly have a warrant, you would be served,
by law enforcement, in person. Still not sure? Hang up and call your county Sherriff’s Ofϐice to conϐirm.
Cell phone rings once from an unknown number and then hangs up:
If you get a missed call from an unknown number, often on your cell phone, do not call them back! You
will only be rewarded with a short voicemail (like a song or brief message) and a $19.95 international
charge as well as other possible charges.
IRS calls demanding taxes are owed and need to be paid immediately:
This is not how the IRS does business, either. Do not give out any personal information and hang the
phone up. But if you think you might have a problem, call your accountant or the IRS directly for the
real story.
Do I report receipt of such phone calls to the police? No, only if they are on‐going &/or harassing in
nature—we can try to help.
When should I notify police? Notify your police department right away if you have fallen a victim to a
scam by giving out your personal info or have paid them money.
Are you a current or new Mendota Heights resident? Wouldn't it be nice to know the
Ordinances that exist within your city?
As police support here at MHPD, we receive complaints and questions on a wide variety of
topics and we welcome anything questions or concerns our residents may have. To help you
out, we would like to take a minute to give you, our residents, the resources available to you to
become familiar with our ordinances.
We highly encourage all residents to visit the city website, mendota‐heights.com and click on
the City Code tab on the left of the home screen to view our Ordinances and become familiar
with current and updated ordinances.
If you’re wondering where to start, check out 6‐2‐2(H), Night Time Parking Prohibited. The
ordinance pertaining to this has been in effect for 7 years and signs are posted within the city,
yet every winter, between November 1 and March 31, we receive complaints from residents/
recipients who received Night Time Parking citations and were unaware of this ordinance.
Familiarity with MH City Ordinances
Submitted By: Police Support Specialist Trista Miller
2
Theft Saturday 1441 hours
Sergeant Neil Garlock reported to the MHPD lobby to meet with a victim of theft. The victim stated that on
the previous day, he was at a local gas station to get his coffee and paid for it. He then left and upon arriving
at his next destination, he realized his wallet was missing. He went back to the gas station to find that his
wallet had been recovered from the restroom, but $480 was missing from it. Under investigation.
Accident Saturday 1433 hours
Officer John Larrive responded to Lexington Ave on a report of a property damage accident. He then met
with the drivers and it turns out driver #1 was traveling on N/B Lexington and driver #2 was exiting a
parking lot onto Lexington and at that time, driver #2 struck driver #1 as they were driving past. Cleared.
Theft Sunday 1118 hours
Officer John Larrive was dispatched to a local gas station on a report of a gas drive-off. In meeting with the
employee, he stated that he did not get a plate number but did in fact get a vehicle description. The case is
pending until the video surveillance is reviewed to see if more information can be obtained.
Medical Sunday 1418 hours
Officer John Larrive and Sergeant Neil Garlock responded to an address on a medical. Upon arrival, it
appeared as though the woman had fallen, was unable to get back up and she had low blood pressure.
Officers and paramedics were able to get the woman onto the stretcher and she was transported to the
hospital.
DWI Sunday 1749 hours
Officer Peyton Fleming was dispatched to a local restaurant on a report of an intoxicated female. He located
the vehicle driving away from the restaurant at which time he followed it to observe the vehicle swerving and
failed to signal a lane change. He pulled the vehicle over and made contact with the woman driver who was
clearly intoxicated, smelling of alcoholic beverage, blood shot eyes and slurred speech. However, she stated
she only had “a glass of wine.” She was asked to perform field sobriety tests in which she was unable. She
provided insufficient breath samples so was considered a test refusal. The woman was then transported to
Dakota County Jail.
Theft Sunday 1757 hours
Officer Tanner Spicer was dispatched to a local gas station on a theft of gas report. Upon meeting with the
employee, she was able to give a partial vehicle description, a plate that did not match registration and a male
suspect description. There was no video surveillance available; case is inactive.
Accident Monday 0754 hours
Officer John Larrive responded to a location on a property damage accident report. Upon arrival, he met
with driver #1 who said he was trying to make a left hand turn from Clement onto 1st Ave but the sun was
in his eyes so he turned too sharp and ended up striking driver #2. Drivers exchanged information.
Cleared.
Fraud Monday 1415 hours
Officer John Larrive was dispatched to call an employee of a local company on a theft report. In speaking
with the business manager, she wanted to report that an employee had set up a fraudulent purchase for two
Samsung phones valued at $799.99 each. The employee had used her work ID number to override the price
of the phones. The manager was made aware of this transaction by Best Buys Loss Prevention/Fraud
3
Lost Property Monday 1531 hours
Officer John Larrive took a phone report from a victim of lost property. The victim wanted to report his
credit card holder was lost. He believed he last had the credit card holder in the SA parking lot. He went to
look for it and but it was not found or turned in. There were several items of importance in this holder to
include, drivers license, social security card, credit cards amongst a few other items. He described it as gray
with plastic windows on both sides.
Identity Theft Tuesday 0845 hours
Officer Scott Patrick was dispatched to a home on an identity theft report. In meeting with the complainant,
he stated his checking account had been compromised. He had wrote a check to pay a bill and placed it in
his mailbox. He soon learned the check was not received by the recipient and an unauthorized charge had
been made at a Sam’s Club. The account has since been closed; no suspects at this time.
Theft of Gas/Suspicious Vehicle Tuesday 1315 hours
An employee reported a theft of gasoline that had occurred a few minutes ago and provided a description of
the vehicle that matched a vehicle recently seen in another area while officers responded to an alarm. Officer
Scott Patrick confirmed the vehicle, a white Mercury Grand Marquee with front end damage bore a WI plate
and was driven by a white, blonde female in her 50’s accompanied by a young male in his 20’s.. However, the
plate did not match the registration info. No video or further leads available. Case is inactive.
Accident Wednesday 1057 hours
Officer Scott Patrick responded to an accident between a USPS delivery truck and car that occurred due to
icy road conditions. No one was injured, but damage was sustained by both vehicles. Information was
gathered and exchanged; officer cleared.
Eerie Noises Thursday 0400—0600 hours
The DCC began fielding phone calls throughout the city regarding “weird music,” “mechanical yet melodic,”
and “metal on metal” noises. Officer Jeff VonFeldt could hear it, and checked for places like the airport, the
railroad tracks, and the river, but he could not find the source. Well, this morning, an inquiring party was
able to find through friends that MPR had already posted an audio of the strange sounds and some
information. Evidently this sound was heard not only in the heights but also in South Minneapolis and the
Highland Park neighborhoods as well. http://blogs.mprnews.org/cities/2014/02/strange-howling-sound-
awakens-st-paul-listen-to-it-here/. In the meantime, we decided to start our poll of ideas on what the sounds
could be (and yes, our imaginations ran wild). The ideas included: wind, river ice, lovey-dovey moose,
whales, rabbit street gangs fighting for turf, alien invasion, zombies, a “frugal” person’s unused wallet opening
(creak), werewolves and Bigfoot. Yep, we’ve had a bit of fun with it. In case you can’t access the link, the
Army Corp of Engineers and the National Park Service are saying it’s due to a large gorge in the Mississippi
River that, due to the sudden “warm-up,” is thawing and shifting. Interesting, but can they prove it…?
4
Sergeant
Brian Convery
was commended
from a local resident
stating he found him
to be friendly,
efficient, responsive,
professional and
non-judgmental.
Officer
Jennifer Fordham
received a generous
letter from SPPD
Commander
McNamara, Sergeant
Byrne & Sergeant
Hazelette thanking
her for the great job
she does as the SRO
at Henry Sibley High
School. The SRO is
the first line of de-
fense in school vio-
lence and works hard
to keep the students
and teachers safe.
Please send us your
positive feedback
on our staff to:
pdrecords@
mendota-heights.com
Your feedback is greatly
appreciated and helps boost
the morale of our staff.
Have a Safe Week!
Check out the MH Crime Map! Click below to search your neighborhood:
http://mendota.prophoenix.com/CS/CrimeMapping.aspx
If you are a Mendota Heights resident and you are going out of town or on
vacation, you can notify MHPD of your outing and we will be more than happy to
keep a watchful eye on your home while you are away. Make your House Check
Request online at www.mendota‐heights.com, visit us in the MHPD lobby to
complete a form or call us and we will take your info over the phone.
MHPD offers monthly Car Seat Safety Checks. To schedule an appointment,
call 651.452.1366 to contact Ofϐicer Jennifer Fordham.
MHPD has a Medication Disposal Box in the lobby of the PD where Dakota
County residents can safely and anonymously dispose of their prescription drugs
and over‐the‐counter medication.
2/06—2/13 2014 YTD
Calls for Service 168 990
Citations 58 288
Warnings 16 102
Police Reports 25 101
Response Time Average 6.00 5.92